In the past buyers and sellers of goods typically met each other to discuss the terms for purchasing the goods. The buyers and the sellers had an opportunity to observe each other and the quality of the goods desired to be purchased. The buyer may have purchased the goods on the spot for the agreed upon price, or the seller may have made similar goods for the buyer which would be delivered and sold at a later date. If the buyer did not have enough money to purchase the goods, the seller may have given the buyer credit to purchase the goods or require the buyer to have some third party known to the buyer and the seller to issue credit to the buyer. If the buyer thought the seller unable to deliver the goods at the agreed upon time or if the buyer thought the goods may not have met the agreed upon quality standards, the buyer may require the seller to post a bond issued by some third party that is known to the buyer and the seller. The above type of transactions are referred to as “arms length transactions”.
In today's society with the proliferation of personal computers in the home, office and factory and the ability to easily connect to the Internet, electronic shopping has replaced many arms length transactions. In the most common scenario, a buyer wishing to purchase goods from a seller visits the seller's web site. The web site allows the buyer to select the desired goods to ascertain its price and to purchase the goods, if so desired. The buyer may not know much about the seller of the goods, i.e., the seller's reputation for selling or manufacturing quality goods, delivering the goods on time and standing by the sold goods, etc. Likewise, the buyer may not know much about the buyer of the goods, i.e., the buyer's ability to pay for the purchased goods, does the buyer typically pay for the goods in a timely manner, does the buyer typically complain about or return goods that meet the specification, etc. Once the buyer clicks on an icon designating an intent to buy the goods, the buyer is immediately confronted with a screen that needs to be filled in with the personal profile and/or business profile of the buyer so that the seller may be able to determine whether or not he should make a deal with the buyer. The buyer may not want to provide personal information or confidential competitive business information to the seller. The buyer would like to know whether or not the seller is able to produce and/or deliver goods that meet the specification in a timely manner.
In the present environment, it would be unlikely that buyers will be able to post anonymous Request For Quote (RFQ) or Request For Proposal (RFP) on the internet and receive responses from qualified sellers.